Since then, a number of them have gone back to their homes, and efforts are on to bring the others back. Neyaz Farooquee of the news spoke with a few of the men about their challenges.
“I’m terrified right now. I’m not sure if I’ll get back in a box or safely. Please come to my aid.
This is what former Indian soldier Urgen Tamang wrote to the news a few days before he was released from the front lines of Russia’s conflict with Ukraine, which began in February and is now in its third year. Tamang was writing from outside a city in southern Ukraine.
Mr. Tamang is one of the ninety-one Indians who were compelled to fight in the conflict. Most of them are from low-income families, and they were lured in by middlemen who offered them jobs and money, sometimes even as “assistants” in the Russian military.
They were deployed to the combat zone instead. Many of them claimed that, despite having little to no military training, they were stationed in areas of the Russian-controlled Ukraine where they had to avoid landmines, drones, missiles, and sniper strikes.
As of now, nine Indians have lost their lives in the conflict, and 19 people have been detained for suspected human trafficking, according to Indian police.
Following Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Russia in July, Russia pledged to free all Indians serving in its army as soon as possible.
